Ooni of Ife pays visit to Emefiele in Kuje Prison

Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, the Ooni of Ife, visited Godwin Emefiele, the former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), at the Kuje Maximum Security Prison in Abuja.

The queen made two visits on Tuesday, December 5, according to a source within the prison—now known as the correctional center—who spoke with Obasanjo News24.

Read Also: Kuje Prison becomes the temporary residence for ex-CBN Gov, Emefiele, as the court remands him

The monarch had both visited and returned to the penitentiary institution a few hours after visiting it in the afternoon, the insider told Obasanjo News24.

Rumour has it that the king and the troubled former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria had lengthy conversations on both occasions.

After the talks, the monarch demanded Emefiele’s release. Emefiele is still in custody since he hasn’t been able to pay the N300 million bond that a court has placed on him.

After failing to post bail, the former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria will remain in the correctional facility until 2024.

Emefiele was brought before the courts by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a six-count indictment that involved procurement fraud.

He was charged with abusing his position to provide CBN employee Sa’adatu Yaro a corrupt advantage by giving him a contract for the purchase of 43 cars valued at N1.2 billion between 2018 and 2020.

Recall that Emefiele was detained by the Department of State Security (DSS) for more than four months prior to being apprehended by the anti-graft organisation.

Moses Olafare, the Ooni’s spokesperson, did not answer calls or texts requesting information about the monarch’s meeting with Emefiele, so attempts to get in contact with him proved fruitless.